What does the old count want with me?
Linde was completely baffled. The territory's plans were almost complete; all that was left was for him to take office. There shouldn't be anything else to worry about.
"I'll go right away."
Upon hearing this, the old steward withdrew to attend to other matters.
Lin De closed the book and clenched his fist.
Since using the aura possession state that night, Linde has kept the aura active, but always at its maximum range, so that he can always detect the surrounding life forms.
The proximity and status of other life forms can be detected at all times, preventing things like being secretly touched from behind as before.
Linde strolled down the corridor, and the servants in the corridor bowed to him as he passed by.
Linde then entered the old count’s study under the watchful eyes of everyone.
"Knock knock".
Linde knocked hard on the door, and the old count's deep voice came from inside.
"Enter."
Linde pushed open the door and saw the old count sitting at the desk by the large window in the study, while Astaire sat upright in the guest chair next to him.
"Alright, Astaire, go and get ready. I have some important business to discuss with Lind."
"Yes, sir."
Linde watched Astaire leave the room, and after the door closed, he asked...
"Father, what do you want to see me about?"
Count Truk stood up and patted Lind on the back.
How is your injury healing?
"She's mostly recovered."
"That's good. I called you here today because of your new teacher."
Seeing Linde's puzzled expression, the old count continued...
"Do you know why our war with the Sass Empire went so smoothly before?"
"Is it because the Grand Duke personally intervened?"
"No, no, no, even a Grand Duke, a knight of the Radiant Gold rank, cannot breach the gates of the Fortified City."
The old count paused.
"It's because of a new weapon, a magical weapon."
This puzzled Lind.
"What does that have to do with Alice? Did she make that new weapon?"
The old count glared at Linde.
"No, it was her mother who made it."
"Um...who is her mother...?"
"The current headmistress of the Royal Kree Magic Academy, Lurie Erna. This woman has some connection with your mother; she was your mother's teacher."
Linde was speechless for a moment. He knew that his mother had studied at a magic academy, but he didn't expect to make contact with her through this.
The old count continued:
"That's not the point. The point is that the Dean herself is an academic. This new weapon has made many old noble mages very dissatisfied, who believe it infringes on their interests. They have jointly impeached the Dean and demanded that the development of this new weapon be banned."
"Then, fearing that her daughter would be implicated, she sent her daughter to us under the guise of tutoring?"
Linde understood somewhat: the upper echelons of the Cree Empire had a complex web of relationships, with the new nobles outside controlling large tracts of land and people and possessing considerable wealth.
Although the old noble territories near the capital were small, they held power and magical resources. As the leader of the academy faction supported by the new nobles, Dean Luli was naturally under the watchful eyes of many old nobles. Those old noble mages held most of the elder seats in the magic academy and often used their numbers to put pressure on the dean's faction.
"Yes, or you're going to go to magic academy."
Linde thought to himself, "Forget it, I don't want to go to that kind of old-fashioned aristocratic school and hang out with those effeminate men with their slicked-back hair."
"So, the reason I called you here this time is to remind you to be more careful and protect that girl well. If something happens to her in our hands, it will be troublesome."
Lin De smiled inwardly. This was easy to handle.
"Then, my respected father, would you like to provide some supplies for your poor son? After all, this job of protecting people is not easy."
"Ha, you little brat, you've actually tried to scheme against me."
The old count smiled:
"I just had Astaire select another 400 men for your guard from the legion, so don't worry."
Upon hearing this, Linde was initially overjoyed, but then his face fell. He was overjoyed that his military strength had increased, but worried about having to support an additional 400 soldiers as a guard, which was a huge burden.
Seeing Linde's worried expression, the old count seemed to see right through him, smiled, and said:
"You don't need to worry too much about food. Just focus on developing your territory. I will organize a grain transport caravan soon to deliver essential supplies to you until you are self-sufficient."
"Hehe, that's good, that's good."
Lin De was overjoyed, now the territory's food supply was secured.
"Oh, right, there's one more thing."
The old count suddenly said seriously:
"You better learn some magic properly over there, don't end up like me, completely clueless about magic."
This statement greatly surprised Lind. In his mind, the old count was not only a rigid knight, but he also always looked down on magic and the like, considering it all to be flashy nonsense. He believed that knights like himself were the ones who truly dominated the battlefield.
What happened to cause such a drastic change in the old count?
"Father, you weren't like this before! What happened?"
Linde asked cautiously.
"Sigh, that was before... things are different now, times have changed."
As if remembering something, the old count pinched his forehead and tucked the family crest into his other hand.
"You'll know when you pass by the fortified city."
"You'll understand what I mean only when you see it for yourself."
"?"
Although Linde was full of doubts, he didn't dare to ask any more questions after seeing the old count's expression.
The old count sighed, and seemed to grip the Truk family crest in his hand even tighter.
"By the way, your brother will be back soon. He just graduated from the Royal Knights. You two have never gotten along since you were kids. When are you planning to leave?"
"I've almost finished all the arrangements here, and I plan to set off in two days."
Linde really didn't want to see this "big brother".
Linde and his older brother had never gotten along well; one was the legitimate son of the legal wife, and the other was the second son born to a concubine.
His older brother looked down on him since childhood and bullied him in various ways until the old count found out and punished him. Then the two of them were raised separately until now.
"Alright, let's do it this way then. When you go out later, call Sisai in."
"Yes, Father."
"Develop well, and I hope that one day you can carry on the glory of the Truk family."
"yes."
Linde bowed and slowly retreated.
Before long, the butler, Sissey, arrived in the old count's study.
"How's the investigation going?"
"No trace of mental magic was found, nor any indication of the ingestion of alchemical potions."
The old butler paused.
"It has been basically confirmed that Young Master Linde's injury was a genuine accident."
"Perhaps I'm overthinking it..."
"Remove those people who arranged the search; there's no need for them."
"Yes, sir."
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